A clear copper brown colored beer, with a thick beige head. The aroma is fruity with some nuts with wood. Some notes of chocolate. The taste is fruity like cherry. Flavors of sherry and port. Notes of wood and a little sour. Not much sour for a ’Oud Bruin". The aftertaste is a little sour with some sweets.

UPDATED: MAY 19, 2009 On tap at Brasserie Beck in Washington. Pours a clear, brownish red with a decent tan head that leaves good lacing. Aroma is wild: overripe cherries, bananas, and raspberries with honey and a big kick of balsamic vinegar. Taste is sour, vinegary, ripe berries, mustiness. The sourness becomes more vinegary and then just sweet over time. Very easy to enjoy and very different. Similar to Duchesse De Bourgogne albeit with less acidic tartness. The balsamic taste takes a bit getting used to but maybe I’m just not yet indoctrinated into the world of sours.

On tap at La Trappe Cafe S.F. This brown ale poured with creamy tan head and a sour fruit aroma. It’s not a bit sour, in fact it’s kind of sweet. The oak taste is easily discernible over the thin brown flavor.

25cl bottle at home, iRate: pours a dark rosewood with almost no head, just a dusting of tan froth. Very nice aroma of dusty grapes, some ripe cherries, rich red port, some lacto and a light dash of a citrus tartness. A nice dose of oak and some balsamic vinegar fill out this nose pleasing treat. The first couple seconds that the beer sits in your mouth not much happens. It seems a bit thin and dull... But then it wakes up. The soft CO2 has just enough powee to kick things into gear. First grapes and cherries burst in followed by the lacto and citrus twang. Slight tannic wood notes pop in and out. Just a touch of brown sugar floats on in above some creme di balsamic before things start to turn a little apple-like. A nice long finish with under-ripe green apples and port, drying out at the last minute. I have to say that I didn’t expect much from this beer, but I am quite pleased!

On tap at Hamilton‘s Tavern in San Diego during the RBSG 08 pubcrawl. Dark orange bronze with a tan head. Aroma is acidic with tart cherries and a slight metallic character. Flavor is berries with an acetic sharpness. Fairly tart but a little too sweet. Poor man‘s Duchesse du Bourgogne. Still not bad.

On tap at The Hopleaf. The Duchesse and the Rodenbach Grand Cru are better, but only just so. This brew was certainly sweeter than the Rodenbach and less sour, both of which compromised the taste mildly. Minimal tan/white head that remains forever. Smells tarter than it tastes. Very fruity flavor, with Raspberry dominating. Overripe fruit and the sourness characteristic of oak-aged brews dominate the taste. Solid Flemish sour- very tasty.

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